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What is better soldering or crimpping copper lines

03-05-2006, 12:40 PM

I seen this program of This Old House and they were using this hand held devise that joint two copper lines together without soldering. I am going to replace all my existing lines and replaced them with copper lines. What do you recommened soldering or crimpping. Also what is the name of this unit and does your company make them.

danny, the tool is a propress and ridgid makes it. the fittings are made by viega.

depending on your plumbing skills and experience, which system will be better for you.

the tool runs approx. $2200. for 1/2''- 1'' copper.
a torch runs approx. $50.
propress is not rocket science.
soldering is a skill, especially when you have water and water soluable flux. not to mention an open flame.

truthfully, if you plan on making a living in plumbing, then i would invest in the propress. if it's a 1 shot deal, i would solder with coaching from someone that knows how to solder. applies if you're not a plumber.

if you're not a plumber, i would suggest that you hire a licensed plumber and work on the project as their helper. this should save some money and give you a proper understanding to solder and repiping.

once again these comments are meant for a non profesional.

give me a little more info and i can steer you in the right direction.

rick.

phoebe it is

Comment

I don't claim to be a plumber. I repiped my old house with cpvc. Very easy to work with, very few tools. The only thing is threaded connections seem to need 10 turns of teflon tape to seal. (I Think this is true with any type of plastic threaded connections). The one bathroom I did 24 years ago and no problems so far.
Best, Dennis......

Comment

1) I do not advocate plastic pipe for domestic water in a building. In my opinion, plastic expands and contracts too much with heat. There are those who disagree.

2) The crimping system is one I do not have experience with (at least not enough to give advice). However, Plumber Rick, et. al., have had good results. I respect their opinions.

3) The problem with #2 is that you will end up spending a larger amount of money for your re-pipe than you would hiring a plumber. If you are a homeowner you will be required to buy the tool, and the fittings are expensive.

4) There is a reason Plumbers were created. There is no easy internet answer to learning a trade. This is the- "I-don't-need-no-stinking-plumbers-I'll-just-get-on-the-internet-and-find-a-web-site-that-will-tell-me-an-easy-answer-to-my-problem-that-will-not-cost-me-money.

Comment

if you seriously are looking at repipeing your home then i would suggest that you do pex tubeing. I personally do not like it but if you dont have great soldering skills the pex is wonderful. The pex tool for 1/2 runs about $200. And the pex tubeing is just about the same as a lenght of copper. And suppriseingly the pex fittings are less then copper fittings. Just my personal opinion.

Comment

I was just at my local plumb supply house today, and they had on display a brand new system for joining copper....not Propress.....this system you simply pushed the copper line into the fittings, and better yet, you could easily take out the line from the fitting as well. No expensive tool (but fittings very expensive as of now) It looked really interesting but I can't remember the name of the product. If I swing by there again soon I'll post it here. Anybody have any experience with or know what I'm talking about?

Comment

I was just at my local plumb supply house today, and they had on display a brand new system for joining copper....not Propress.....this system you simply pushed the copper line into the fittings, and better yet, you could easily take out the line from the fitting as well. No expensive tool (but fittings very expensive as of now) It looked really interesting but I can't remember the name of the product. If I swing by there again soon I'll post it here. Anybody have any experience with or know what I'm talking about?

Comment

shark bite are good for a quick repair. but the sizes are limited to 1/2'' and 3/4''. 1'' has yet to show up. the bigger issue is also very limited fitting selection. also the cost is much higher than propress or copper.

i've used a handfull and have a few handfull of fittings in the truck. not bad, but propress is a better system. the one advantage to sharkbite is that they are rated for copper, pex and cpvc. a good way to transition in a pinch or repair.